


But Bro

by vocalspaz88



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Dom/sub, Incest, Light Dom/sub, M/M, Stridercest - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-03
Updated: 2014-05-16
Packaged: 2018-01-21 18:47:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1560398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vocalspaz88/pseuds/vocalspaz88
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Raising a little cool kid had some struggles involved. Like having to explain the necessity of the shades and having to teach the little man to conceal his feelings, but it could also be very rewarding. The Strider bothers were best friends, but eventually, the little man has grow up, and the big man, Broderick Strider might be left in the dust.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“But Bro, I don’t want to go,” Whispered the tiny blonde child. He clutched at the fabric of his brother’s pants.  
Broderick Strider, or Bro, chuckled, looking down at his kid. Dave was only five years old, and it was supposed to be his first day at kindergarten. “Why not?”  
“I don’t trust them.”  
“Why not?”  
Dave pressed his face into the back of Bro’s knee. The man sighed, but his chest tightened up with affection for the little guy. Dave held on tighter. “They’re all looking at me,” Dave whined.  
Bro scanned the group of kids all hanging out in front of the school. They were playing on swings, chasing each other, and shouting at their brand new friends. Nothing indicated that anyone was looking at Dave at all. “How do you know that?”  
“I can see all of their eyes, Bro.”  
Staring straight ahead, Bro reached up to adjust the brim of his hat. He had always taught Dave not to give anything away, not to let anyone see what he was feeling, but that didn’t mean he should fear those who lived a little differently. “The eyes are the window to the soul, kid,” Bro murmured. “Some people want to show the world their souls, but some people, people like you and me, shine a little too bright. Gotta keep them shades on until you really get to know someone.”  
With a small frown, Dave just cuddled against his leg even more, and he sighed. “Trust me, lil man, it’ll be okay.”  
Still, no matter what he said, Dave would not let go of his leg. Bro had to peel him off to get him to even step into the front gates. The bubbly looking woman Bro assumed was the teacher ushered Dave inside, encouraging him fruitlessly to go play with the other kids. Bro lingered, but the woman shooed him away, assuring him everything would be fine. The last thing he saw was Dave climbing up into a tree, and staying there.

Back at the apartment Bro sat on the couch and got out his laptop to get a little work done. Smuppets wouldn’t sell themselves, but he didn’t even get an hour of work in before he was getting a call from the school. “Strider residence,” He said, tapping away at his keyboard. “Bro speaking.”  
“Is this Mr. Broderick Strider?” Huffed a feminine voice. He recognized it as the teacher from the kindergarten. “Dave Strider’s father?”  
“Guardian,” He corrected, tensing up. Dave was much better off with him as a brother, not a father. “My name is Bro.”  
“Well, Mr. Strider, Dave is being very disobedient. He refuses to take off his sunglasses and we are indoors.”  
“He never takes them off,” Bro said shortly.  
“Well, he needs to.”  
“No, he actually doesn’t.”  
“Does he have a doctor’s note?”  
Bro faltered. “No.”  
“Then you’d better come talk to him and work something out.”  
The line went dead and Bro ground his teeth together, pocketing his phone, grabbing his keys, and speeding to the school. It happened to art time when he got there, and among the little sticky faced brats drawing ugly unicorns, their families, and kittens, Dave was on the far end of the room with his teacher kneeling beside him. On Dave’s easel was, in Bro’s eyes, an expertly drawn smuppet. Keeping his face void of the pride he felt, Bro approached the teacher, hearing little whispers from the kids as he did.  
“He’s big.”  
“Is that her boyfriend?”  
“Maybe he’s gonna yell at us. He looks scary.”  
“He’s got silly glasses, too. But I like his gloves.”  
Ignoring all of the comments, he crossed the room and leaned by the wall, waiting for the teacher to notice he was there. Her students sure as hell had.  
“Can you tell me what’s wrong with what you have drawn?” She was saying.  
Dave’s face was artfully blank. “Nope.”  
“Think,” She said patiently, pointing to the red plush rump. Dave even drew the rump. Bro had to fight back a laugh. “Do you think this is appropriate? What even is it, honey?”  
“It’s not honey, that’s for sure.” Dave said snarkily.   
“It’s a smuppet,” Bro said, making everyone turn and look at him. “We have them all over the house. I make and sell them for a living; I’m completely unsurprised Dave would draw one.”  
“Well that doesn’t explain what it is and why it needs to be drawn so inappropriately.”  
“It’s a sex toy,” Bro said, voice a challenge. “Do you have a problem with that?”  
Out of the corner of his eye, Bro saw Dave snicker. He merely pointed at the boy, and the expression on his face went smooth again. Good boy.  
“Would you step outside with me please, Mr. Strider?” She asked, voice like spoiled sweets.  
“His name is Bro!” Dave piped up.  
“Shush, lil man,” Bro said, then looked down at the teacher. “He’s right though.”  
“I am not calling you Bro,” She said stiffly, turning on her heel and marching out.   
Sighing, Bro followed. “What do you want?”  
“Is that how your raise your child?” She demanded, pointing a sharp red fingernail towards the open classroom door. “With sex toys and unnecessary eyewear?”  
“What business is it of yours how I raise my kid?” He countered. “Has Dave stepped one toe out of line? And I'm not talking drawing a damn puppet or wearing his shades. Has he actually misbehaved? Once?”  
The teacher faltered, turning red and looking flustered. Then, her eyes got wide, far too big for her face. “He refused to follow instructions, as a matter of fact” She sniffed.  
“What, when you asked him to remove his shades?”  
She opened her mouth and closed it again, repeating the motion like a fish with lipstick. Expressionless as always Bro shoved past her and went inside, scooping Dave up with one hand and throwing him over his shoulder. “Time to go,” He said casually. Dave didn’t even put up a fuss. He was so used to being carried around that way he just pushed up his shades, holding them to his face. Dave was probably the most obedient, dignified, and intelligent kid in the whole state of Texas.  
As they walked away, Bro wasn’t surprised that the woman didn’t say anything. He heard the angry click of stomping heels and the slam of a door, but that was all. “Bye bye,” Dave said, waving his little hand. “Where are we going, Bro?”  
“Home,” The man answered.  
“What about school, Bro?”  
He thought about this for a long time. What about school? The past ten minutes had shown Bro that he couldn’t trust public schools to accept the Strider lifestyle, and private school had to be that much worse. “I guess I’ll have to teach you myself, huh kid?”  
“You’re not a teacher, Bro,” He protested.  
“Hush, you trust me dontcha?”  
“Yes I do.”  
“Good. I’ll take care of everything, don’t you worry you’re pretty little head.”  
“But Bro-“  
“But nothing. I’m gonna school you myself. Just you and me.”  
Dave didn’t argue again, and Bro spent the rest of that day ordering home school books. He’d be damned if he was going to let some stranger spend more time with his little man than he did. Home schooling actually turned out to be much easier than Bro would have previously thought. Dave was a bright kid, he wasn’t very argumentative, and he followed simple instructions. On top of his normal curriculum, Bro signed Dave up for afternoon martial arts. That way, though he spent most of his time at home, he’d still have some form of socialization. Dave wasn’t one to approach other kids, he wasn’t shy, he just wasn’t interested, but he gave off an aura that drew people close to him and soon enough, he had many friends and acquaintances, but no matter how many times Bro asked one certain question, he always got the same answer.  
“Jackson was the one who broke it first,” He said one afternoon, talking about breaking boards. “He hit it with his head.”  
“Do you like Jackson, a lot?”  
“I guess so,” Dave murmured.  
“Is he your best friend?”  
“No.”  
Bro smirked, but asked anyway. “Who’s your best friend, Dave?”  
“You are.”  
“Good boy.”  
Bro liked that Dave loved him so much, but sometimes he worried. As Dave grew older, he still wasn’t changing his answer. Most pre-teens didn’t think of their guardians as their best friends, and if they did, it was usually the result of bullying or depression. Dave wasn’t bullied, and he certainly wasn’t depressed. The kid seemed perfectly content just hanging around the house with Bro. The man didn’t mind that, not at all, but still he worried. “It’s a nice day, Dave,” Bro said one afternoon.  
The kid, almost eleven to be exact, was lying across the couch on his belly watching hilariously awful cartoons. “You think?”  
Bro yanked open the blinds, and the harsh Texas sunlight poured in. “You tell me.”  
“Close it,” Dave hissed, throwing an arm over his face. “My eyes, my eyes…”  
“You’re eyes are fine,” Bro chuckled. “You’re wearing shades. You always wear shades.”  
“Irrelevant.”  
“Don’t give me that sass, kid. You wanna go?”  
Dave looked up, interested. “Maybe.”  
“Oh, you know I’ll kick your little ass,” He challenged. He knew how to get his little punk of off the couch.  
“That’s what you think!” Dave shouted, leaping off of the couch and running to the roof. On the way, he darted to the kitchen, grabbed himself a sword, and disappeared up the stairs to the roof. Bro casually strolled into the kitchen himself, taking his sweet time as he pawed through the weapons in the fridge. They had some major organization issues in that house. He picked up a katana, seeing his reflection. His pointy shades gleamed. He chuckled, snatched up his puppet Cal, and flash stepped to the roof to knock Dave around a little bit.  
Of course when the play fight was over Dave was battered and bruised, but Bro didn’t have a scratch. Dave would get nowhere in life if he was allowed to win all the time. “Go wash up kid,” Bro instructed, shoving the swords, and Cal, back into the fridge. When you come back we’ll do some school.  
Dave groaned, dragging his officially kicked butt to the bathroom to shower. Bro smiled.  
While Dave got cleaned up, Bro pulled out his laptop and logged on to his little porn site. He had a few more smuppet orders to fill and some submissions to edit. Sure it wasn’t exactly a clean cut white color job, but it wasn’t the only one he had, and it brought in a lot of extra income. He worked four nights a week DJ-ing and bartending, but the site gave him and Dave that extra cash they needed for things like skateboard shoes, pizza night, and emergencies. Dave even knew about the site. He wasn’t allowed on it, not yet, he was only ten, but the kid knew what sex was and saw smuppets all over the place, so Bro didn’t see a reason to keep the secret. He didn’t want Dave to think sex was a thing you had to be ashamed of, he wanted the kid t be open with it, at least at home.  
“Bro, the wifi is being stupid.”  
He looked up, seeing Dave with wet hair and his iphone.“Who you talking to, squirt?”  
“John.”  
“Who’s John?”  
Dave shrugged. “My best friend.”  
Bro was speechless. He sat there blank faced as his ten year old kid wondered out of the room with outstretched arms, searching for signal.


	2. Chapter 2

The notion had been nagging at Bro for the better part of a year, but it still seemed to hit him all at once when Dave asked if he could start going to public school. Dave was growing up, and fast. He wasn’t gonna be a little twink forever; the kid wanted his own life. It was summer, he was turning twelve that winter, and he wanted to go to a public middle school. “We’ve tried public school before, lil’ man, you didn’t like it. Remember?”  
“Hardly,” The pre teen scoffed. “I was like what, five?”  
Bro knew it was stupid, but he took Dave’s request a little personally.“What makes you want to try again? Don’t you like it here?”  
“Yeah, I like it here,” He said, shrugging. “But it’s just us, you know? We don’t have sports, clubs, dances, or anything like that. I don’t know.”  
Bro was quiet for a while, but he nodded. “Alright, kid,” He said. “You can start in the fall.”  
“I’m gonna go tell John!” Dave said enthusiastically, turning on his heel and scurrying down the hall. He disappeared behind his bedroom door and Bro could almost hear him booting up his computer. Dave was always on the computer. If he wasn’t schooling or doing his martial arts, he was always on the damn computer. Bro wasn’t really worried, but he felt a little jealous. He knew Dave was talking to that John, some kid his age that lived half way across the country. Bro wasn’t sure how he could be best friends with someone he never even met. Even if John was the most amazing twelve year old on the face of the earth, Bro was still baffled by the amount of time Dave spent cooped up in his bedroom.  
That evening Bro ordered a large meat lovers pizza, wings, and some soda and when it arrived he rapped lightly on Dave’s closed door. “Hey kid, soups on,” He called, hearing almost frantic typing and the shuffling of Dave moving around the room. There was some hushed muttering, but no answer. “Dave?”  
“I’ll be out in a minute,” Dave huffed, voice muffled by the door. “Start without me.”  
“You don’t want to pick out the best slice?” Dave always wanted to claim the best slice.  
“You take it this time.”  
“Whatever you say, lil man.”  
Bro put his hands in his pockets and walked back down the hall, frowning thoughtfully. “Something’s wrong,” he murmured to himself. “Either very different, or very wrong.”  
Despite his unease, Bro flicked open the box of wings and plucked a few out, dripping them on his plate. He ate them slowly, dipping each in ranch until they dripped. He left the pizza alone. He couldn’t make himself take the first slice, it didn’t feel right. Eventually Dave turned up, face slightly flushed in sweats and a rumpled tee shirt. “Hey Bro,” He said, opening up the pizza box. He examined the pie carefully, and then reached for the slice that was not only biggest, but was covered tip to crust in meat. He could hardly see the cheese.  
Seeing Dave’s face when he hungrily devoured it made him smile. That kid had the appetite of any grown man, and as they settled into a comfortable silence to eat, Bro’s worries lessened a little bit. When they were finished, they could hear the soft pitter patter of rain on the roof and Dave made a face, shooting Bro a look of dread. “We’re not gonna brawl in that, are we?”  
On a relatively daily basis Dave and Bro had recreational fights on the roof in place of gym class, sometimes they even fought through the rain, but after a moments consideration Bro just patted his stomach, shrugging. “Nah, I’m too damn stuffed,” He admitted, smiling at the sound of Dave laughing. “We’ll just take a lazy day, how’s that sound lil man?”  
“Sounds awesome,” Dave said.  
Before he could say something back, Dave was getting up from the table and going back into his bedroom, closing the door behind him. Bro frowned, sitting at the table for a bit. He had wanted to pop in a movie or play some games, but Dave clearly had other plans. He was starting to miss the days Dave clung to his leg.  
Sighing, Bro cleaned up the dinner mess and made his way to his own room, sewing up a few smuppets to kill time until finally it was late enough for bed to be a suitable activity. He stripped down to his boxers, listening to the now heavy rain pound. A large crack of thunder had him looking over his shoulder at his open door. The hall was dark, silent, and nothing was moving but the ticking hands of the clock. Dave hated thunderstorms. He tore his gaze from the kid’s door, shaking his head. Dave was growing up, he wasn’t going to jump at a little thunder, right? Just in case, though, Bro left his door open as he crawled in bed, putting his shades on the table to his left. He stretched out on his stomach and closed his eyes, drifting off easily with his full stomach and the sound of the storm outside. It wasn’t long though before a soft creak had him stirring.  
He didn’t open his eyes, but he listened carefully to the soft padding of feet, trying not to be heard. He held back a smile as the tiny sound got closer and finally, he felt the weight of another person crawling into the bed beside him. A cold finger gently prodded him on the arm. “Bro?”  
Cracking an eye open, he glanced up at Dave, and without a word he lifted the covers.  
Dave climbed in eagerly, curling up very close. Bro turned onto his side and took Dave into his arms. Dave was cold, as if he hadn't even gotten into bed before coming in. He felt the kid shiver against his chest, then cuddle close, obviously eager to share the warmth. Bro softly pet Dave’s hair until he was asleep, listing to the thunder that clearly had his brother spooked.  
He of course hated to see Dave scared, but at the same time he loved it when the kid crawled in bed with him. Bro got a little lonely sometimes all by himself in such a big bed. He wasn’t afraid to be alone, he grew up alone, but he didn’t like it. Having a cute little kid so near was comforting. He chuckled as Dave muttered and moved around in his sleep. He could have closed his eyes and joined Dave, but he liked watching him dream, and dream he did.  
What Bro noticed though, was that Dave was behaving sort of unusually. Whenever he watched Dave sleep as a kid he would murmur inaudibly, rub his eyes and yawn cutely when he was dreaming, but as he watched now he saw Dave toss and turn, grunting things Bro just barely misunderstood. What finally made Bro realize what was going on was when Dave pressed a bit closer, and he felt it. Dave was clearly hot and bothered by something, or someone, in his dream and his body was responding accordingly. Bro didn’t move, completely at loss for what to do in such a situation. Eventually he gathered his wits and gently peeled Dave off of his chest, replacing himself with a firm pillow before getting up and heading to the kitchen for a quick drink. He’d play dumb, he decided as he poured himself a glass of orange crush. No sense embarrassing the poor kid, right? He gulped down his soda and shoved a few dozen swords out his the sink so he could rinse out the glass and go back to bed. When he stepped in the room though, Dave had either forgotten where he was or was acting in his sleep, because Bro could clearly see Dave’s hand moving beneath the waist band of his underwear.  
The first thing that came into Bro’s head was the word “Shota.” Little, blonde, cute, and sexually immature, Dave wasn’t even touching himself correctly. An image of the correct way popped into his head soon after, but he shook that thought from his mind at once, shocked it had gotten lodged there in the first place. “Fuckin creep,” He muttered at himself. He glanced at the clock. It was about one in the morning, way too early to actually start functioning and way too early to wake anyone up without a damn good reason. Bro wanted to get back to sleep, but there was an eleven year old jacking off in his bed and he couldn’t make himself get back in there, knowing that was going on. It gave him thoughts he knew he shouldn’t have about his little man.  
Finally he reasoned that his smartest option was to sleep on the couch. His sleep was restless, he kept thinking about Dave, the little shota snuggled up in his bed. When he opened his eyes his face felt flushed and he shook his head, muttering to himself about pedophilia as he dragged his feet back to his bedroom. Dave was laying there still snoozing, sprawled out on his stomach with his boxers riding up so far Bro could see the bottom curve of his ass. He chuckled despite the situation, lifting the kid up carefully and putting him on the couch as he changed the now messy sheets. He’d go with the original plan and play dumb, no kid wanted anyone knowing about their wet dreams. When everything was clean he put Dave back in bed, climbed in himself, and pulled the covers over them both. He could pretend that night never happened. He kissed Dave on the forehead.


End file.
